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Welcome to all members of the Holy Name School Community for 2020. I hope you find the newsletter each fortnight a wonderful source of additional information about the opportunities and events of school life. With the Compass student information system as our main home-school communication tool, the Newsletter is the second best place to share in the life of Holy Name. If you would like to know more about anything you read or need support to access Compass, please speak with our office staff or email the office admin@forster.catholic.edu.au.
We especially welcome our new families and staff and hope that you already feel like a very important part of the school community. I know that Mrs Praschinger, Mrs Monks and Mrs Banham have worked really hard to make sure our Kinder students and their families have had the best start that any family could imagine. Fr Greg popped in last week to say hello to the Kinder students and couldn't believe how settled and responsive to teacher directions the students were already. Well done to all involved!
The classes and playground seem really settled, with many students glad to be back enjoying the company of friends in a way that only school classrooms and playgrounds can offer. Thanks for making sure your children were ready for school.
Students, parents and staff are invited to the first Youth Mass for the year to be held in the Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church on Sunday February 16th at 5:30pm. A few of our students regularly play in the band during this Mass and others would be welcome to join. If you are interested in joining the band, please contact Carmel Brown. The band get together to rehearse on the day from 4:15pm. (c_m_brown@live.com.au)
Strategic Directions
In 2019, Holy Name worked through a process of Self-Review, allowing the voices of all within our community to contribute to the strategic directions for the 2020-2022 period. The main areas of focus for Holy Name over the next 3 years include:
1. Formation - strengthening our Catholic Identity through formation opportunities within areas of Social Justice, Service to Others and as Stewards of Creation
2. Leadership & Learning - empowering teachers and leaders to lead with purpose & clarity
3. Well-being & Partnerships - building community through meaningful connections
Over the next 3 years, you will notice some changes as we implement actions within our plan. The children will be involved in the garden space in different ways, the Student Representative Council will become more focused on environmental sustainability and service to others, and our staff will step-up the engagement of students and parents in monitoring growth and progress in learning. I'm really looking forward to celebrating the successes that come for students, parents and teachers over the next 3 years.
Professional Learning Team Meetings
One of the changes already in place is the Friday morning Professional Learning Team meetings for teachers. This change has been made possible by a shift in the start time of the school day and lunch breaks. Over the week, we start earlier at 8:45am on Monday through to Thursday so that on a Friday we can start lessons at 9:30am. This slight change provides teachers with the opportunity to meet. Kinder, Year 1 and Year 2 teachers meet on the odd weeks, with Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 meeting on even weeks. The first of these meetings involved setting the meeting norms and targets for student learning and discussing assessment and monitoring growth in learning. The idea is that teachers are focused on individual students as well as the grades and stages to target areas identified through NAPLAN and the PAT standardised assessments.
The four PLC questions guiding each meeting include:
1. What do we expect our students to learn?
2. How will we know they are learning?
3. How will we respond when they don't learn?
4. How will we respond if they already know it?
Each Friday, students are welcome at school from 8:30am. All students gather in the hall at 9:15am for a brief assembly but as long as students are at school by 9:25am, they can meet their teachers in the hall and head to class for lessons to commence at 9:30am.
The following images captiure the Stage 2 and Stage 3 teachers meeting for their first PLT of the year.
Parent & Carer Information afternoon
On Tuesday 18th February, teachers will open their classrooms for 2 sessions at 3:30pm and 4pm. Teachers will share information about their plan for the year and provide time for questions at the end. We encourage all parents and carers to attend as research shows that a positive parent-teacher connection has many benefits for student learning.
Parents & Friends first gathering for 2020
All parents, carers and friends are invited to our first meeting for the year. The meeting will be held this Monday 10th February at 6pm in the staffroom. Please come to the office and we'll direct you down to the staffroom. With our P&F President and Vice President relocating overseas and interstate, we really would love to see some new faces. Meetings are normally on Tuesday evenings in Weeks 3 and 7 each term, however this week, the Diocesan 'Called to Serve Mass' is on in Newcastle on Tuesday evening and our staff are attending.
These meetings are a great way to keep your finger on the pulse and to become actively involved in your child's education.
Plunge Canteen
As a community we are fortunate that the team at Plunge have invested in providing a school canteen for Holy Name students. Without them, our school would not have a canteen. They understand the importance of healthy eating and contributing to the sustainability of our environment, two points that we also believe are an important part of a child's education. Over the next couple of weeks, we will be consulting with families and asking for your feedback. All constructive feedback will be considered and decisions made that are within our range of possibilities. We already know that we are not going to please everyone but are super keen to get your thoughts so that the partnership with Plunge is successful and therefore the canteen option at Holy Name School is maintained.
A small additional note about the feedback - I will be sending out a survey and/or speaking with parents and carers. Members of our community should not attend the Plunge Cafe to speak with staff. Negative engagements reflect poorly on our community and are not necessarily representative of the majority. Heath, from Plunge, is more than happy to speak to families at Holy Name School when he is in the canteen. This can be arranged through the school office.
The students and staff who have been ordering from the canteen have been really happy with the flavours and quality of the food served. Please encourage your child to give it a go if they are a bit reluctant. Thank you to the volunteers from our parent and carer community who have supported this change - it's great to have you back!
Holiday maintenance
We are grateful for the work completed during the holidays and for Mrs Monkley who coordinated access for the contractors. Miss Spinks gave the freshly painted staff area a design once over and it is such a big improvement for staff.
All classrooms had their carpets steam cleaned and the entire school was sprayed for pests. The sandpits received a top-up and the plans have commenced to build a cricket net training facility at the back of the Primary playground. Our next project is to install a shade over the Infants creative play area. Let me know if you have are able to help with the shade install.
The School sport program is up and running, with the swimming carnivals and athletics coaching clinics already underway. I'm looking forward to sharing a great term with you all.
Warm wishes,
Brooke Stephens
2020 Family Discount and Diocesan Pastoral Contribution Form
Welcome families to a new school year,
Thank you to the families that have returned their 2020 Family Discount and Diocesan Pastoral Contribution Form.
There are still a number of families who have not returned this form. It has been sent home manually, emailed and sent via Compass. Could you please return this form on Monday 10th February at the latest as 2020 billing will be started on Monday.
Many thanks
Admin Team
New beginnings for the School Band and Music program!
This year we have been so excited to welcome Miss Reynolds to our staff as the Music, Drama, Choir and Band teacher.
Music & Drama lessons have already commenced for all students and Band will start this Tuesday, 11th February from 8:00am in Mackillop Hall. Any student learning an instrument including flute, clarinet, brass, strings and percussion are to attend. Students learning guitar and/or keyboard are more than welcome to attend, however will be asked to play percussion instruments (with the teachers support).
Miss Reynolds is busy planning for the introduction of formal lessons for our School Choir. Practise will occur every Wednesday between 12:00 and 12:45pm in the Music Room (E2, Yr 2 room closest to the Carawa St entrance).
We are excited to announce that all Primary students will soon commence recorder lessons each week. Please read the attached introductory letter from Miss Reynolds and the plan for purchase of a recorder for your child.
Swimming
On Wednesday we held our school swimming carnival at the YMCA. Thank you to all the students for participating and cheering on their houses during the day and also for your great behaviour! A huge thank you to our parent volunteers who assisted on the day and to all the staff who ensured the carnival ran smoothly.
There were some great results on the day, and it was great to see kids pushing themselves in the races.
The results were:
Junior Girls |
Junior Boys |
1st Lilah Gibson |
1st Hamish Carmichael |
2nd Kannika Broadbent |
2nd Levi Van Haren |
3rd Bonnie Dempsey |
3rd Charlie Gibson |
11 yrs Girls |
11 yrs Boys |
1st Sophie Scislo |
1st Rhys Shanahan |
2nd Charlotte Cooper |
2nd Riley Kinkade |
3rd Georgia Sparks |
3rd Liam Shanahan |
Senior Girls |
Senior Boys |
1st Kalani Ryan |
1st Jack Thacker |
2nd Grace Randall |
2nd Austin Murray Latraye Wilson Hayden Robertson |
3rd Nakyha Smith 14 |
|
House Points
Dolphins 280 points
Sharks 211 points
Stingrays 249 points
Whales 186 points
The Regional Carnival will take place at Gloucester next Wednesday, February 12th. The children took permission and canteen notes home today and these need to be returned on Monday. Students will be accompanied on the bus and at the carnival by Mrs Stephens and Mrs Arrow. The bus will be leaving at 8:15am from Holy Name and picking up at Failford at 8:25am.
Summer Sports
Charlotte Cooper is currently competing as part of the Dio Basketball team at the Polding Championships. We will let you know how she fares next newsletter.
Lexia® Core5® Reading supports educators in providing differentiated literacy instruction for students of all abilities in grades K–6. Lexia’s research-proven program provides explicit, systematic, personalized learning in the six areas of reading instruction, targeting skill gaps as they emerge, and providing teachers with the data and student-specific resources they need for individual or small-group instruction. In Lexia's 3-step personalized learning model students are motivated by their own success and have their own personalised learning paths, student performance data is easy to access and simple to interpret, and teachers have the resources they need for face-to-face instruction and independent student practice.
Students can access Core 5 from home on either an iPad, tablet or computer, in the classroom under the direction of a teacher or at the Core 5 tutoring sessions that are held on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings in the Learning Hub from 8:30am - 8:45am.
Core 5:
- Engages and motivates students in a game-like environment
- Provides progress-monitoring student data without a test
- Accessible via iPad, Chromebook, or browser
- Students work independently to develop critical reading and language skills through individualized, motivating learning paths.
- All students, regardless of their skill level, can each work at their own pace and the teacher is notified (on web-based reports and via email) only when they require support.
- Lexia’s truly personalised approach targets skill gaps as they emerge, providing time-pressed teachers with the data and student-specific resources they need for individual or small-group instruction.
- Your child begins Core5 at a starting point that fits his or her needs and works in online activities throughout the week.
- Online activities include direct instruction and feedback as your child learns new skills.
- Progress and performance in the program is reported so teachers can provide help when needed.
- Paper-and-pencil activities are also used for practice and may be done in school or brought home.
- Achievement certificates may be sent home to celebrate success and to show progress in the program.
- It is important that your child works without any help while using Core5. All of the work your child does at home is recorded and reported to school. This way, teachers can see when help is needed and provide additional instruction at school.
- If you have a question about your child’s username or password, please contact your child’s teacher.
The Core 5 parent instructional handout is attached.
Great Lakes United Football Club 2020 Registrations open
The Great Lakes United Football Club invites interested players to register for the 2020 winter season of football. Registrations are online.
Please note that the ACTIVE KIDS SCHEME must be applied for before registering.
The club provides all NEW players with shorts, socks and a polo shirt. Polo shirts will also be available for returning players and we would encourage players to bring tops which they have outgrown back to the club and these can be recycled.
For returning players, shorts and socks will be available for purchase.
There will be a day in March (which you will be advised of by email), where the gear will be made available. Otherwise, coaches will be in touch regarding teams and training for 2020.
The registration fees will be:
5 – 7 years |
$123 |
8 – 11 Years |
$135 |
12 – 18 Years |
$155 |
Seniors |
$255 |
Enquirers: For more information contact Richard Allen (Registrar): 0403 521 789
Ray Brady President
Dear Parents / Carers
Book Club pamphlets went home this week. If you child has missed out please contact the office and I will send one home.
Book Club will close on Friday 14 February 2020.
Thanking you
Kerry